Just off Oosterdam-1st Med Cruise

[pirate cruiser]

Hello,

I will be brief-this was our 4th different HAL ship and 1st Med cruise-12 days from Barcelona to Trieste. My GF's family is Italian so she has always wanted to visit Italy and it was well worth it. Overall a great experience and another great ship-something keeps bringing us back to HAL. I will mention that the Rolling Stone Room band was the best we have seen and Carlos the entertainment host was the most engaging we have been around. I will be glad to answer any questions if you have any and I appreciate the info we have gotten here on CC-thanks again.

[QuattroRomeo]

We really enjoyed our Med cruises, so much to see and experience! What excursions/ tours did you do? Any food tours?

[pirate cruiser]

We did a guided tour of Florence that included the museum-mainly Michaelangelo and Da Vinci and after lunch the Statue of David-glad we were on a tour because there is just so much to see and there is no way you can see everything in one day. The statue of David is a must-see and we were able to get close enough for some great pics. We did the ruins of Pompeii in Naples and again glad it was guided because Pompeii is huge. Did the HOHO bus in Rome- it was easy but again you only have time to see the highlights-we got some good pics of Trevi, the Pantheon, the Colosseum is awesome and I liked Circus Maximus imagining the chariot races. It would have been overwhelming if we had not been on a guided tour so glad we did that since it was our first time. No food tours but since I am a beer drinker I was pleasantly surprised how good the beers were.

[TimeForExploring]

Hi, pirate cruiser! Thanks for the positive feedback about the ship! We will be boarding the Oosterdam in Barcelona for the 14-day transatlantic crossing - our first cruise together! We love live music and dancing. I was so disappointed when I saw that they had removed BB Kings from the ship but glad to hear you enjoyed the Rolling Stone lounge. What kind of music did you find on the ship? Were there people dancing anywhere? My favorite music is blues and jazz but we also love 70s and 80s rock and dance music. Thanks in advance for any tips you can give!

[pirate cruiser]

This band consisted of 2 female vocalists, 1 male vocalist, lead guitar, bass guitar, drummer and keyboard player-they were the best band of any we have heard in our 4 cruises. They played pretty much anything but I would have to say mostly 70s, 80s and some newer stuff-the dance floor was busy every time we were there. Also DJ Valentino played a good mix of music at the sea-view pool and in the RS room and he will take requests. There were also some piano players but we really didn't listen to them. Hope this band is still there when you go.

[Nodakboiler]

Sounds great- we board the Oosterdam in 2 weeks and look forward to the music walk!

[VMax1700]

@pirate cruiser

Glad that you enjoyed oosterdam.  She has been and is an almost permanent resident in the Med.

A question you may be able to answer:  Do the regular verandah cabins still have bathtubs and plastic (stick to your back) shower curtains or have they been replaced with shower stalls?

[pirate cruiser]

We had a VA on deck 8-bathtub/shower and the shower curtain did not bother me plus the water temperature did not fluctuate.

[VMax1700]

3 minutes ago, pirate cruiser said:

We had a VA on deck 8-bathtub/shower and the shower curtain did not bother me plus the water temperature did not fluctuate.

Thanks.  Just hoped that they had got rid of the tubs and fitted showers only.  The temperature control is amazing.

[pirate cruiser]

I agree about the tubs-the shower on NS was awesome and I'm too tall for a tub anyway.

[Heartgrove]

Disappointed that the 2024 turn-around port will be Piraeus instead of Trieste. We needed to book with MSC instead.

[pmjnh]

Thanks for sharing  your experience. We are boarding in 2 weeks in Piraeus. First time on the Oosterdam. we were on her sister ship the Noordam in July so we should find the layout familiar. Excited!

[AKJonesy]

Is there any specialty dining on Oosterdam other than Canaletto and Pinnacle?

[pirate cruiser]

That was the only 2 options on our cruise-I will say that Canaletto is better now than it was when we first tried it on Eurodam in 2013.

[aaaaa]

No more BB Kings on this ship?

[pirate cruiser]

No-just the Rolling Stone Room band and trivia was played in the Billboard on board room. This band was so good we didn't even miss BB Kings.